From potential entrepreneur to classical engineer in the French Grandes Ecoles: a typology

1. From potential entrepreneur to classical engineer in the French Grandes Ecoles: a typology Caroline VERZAT Rémi BACHELET Dominique FRUGIER IntEnt 2005

2. The aims: Engineering Grandes Ecoles graduates create fewer businesses than management graduates and students taking shorter studies. Long-term purpose of our research: to define and explain how the entrepreneurial spirit develops during studies and what factors can be acted upon. Previous papers • Research design: INTENT 2003 • Methodology: Académie de l’entrepreneuriat 2004 Work in progress - Findings presented here • 3 major variables describe professional identity • 5 types of young engineering students in “Grandes Ecoles” IntEnt 2005

3. Before the entrepreneurial process, Enterprising spirit • The entrepreneurial process (Gartner 85,88, Stevenson et Jarillo 90, Fayolle 02) • Complex multi-shaped phenomenon • Diversity of entrepreneurial situations and entrepreneurs • What happens before the entrepreneurial process ? • Many models explain the intent to starting up a business on the basis of the models proposed by Ajzen and Shapero(Kruger Carsrud 93, Autio 97, Wang Wong Lu 01, Peterman 03,Tounès 03) • However, intention is not always clear and business creation can come much later Entrepreneurial aptitudes Entrepreneurial proprensity Entrepreneurial intentions Decision Action Entrepreneurial behavior Tounès,03 Start / Stop IntEnt 2005

4. The components of the enterprising spirit in our first model Setting up a business Typology Possible signs of an enterprising spirit: • Feeling of being skilled • Self efficacy in: • - Seizing opportunities • - Working with a team • - Developing a network • - Technological skills • - Working intensely • - Organizational skills • - Self projection in future • - Making decisions • Individual learning • Choice of courses • Other activities • Students unions • Associations membership • Identity-building past • Social background • Career choice • Type of Career • Entrep. Attitudes • Autonomy • Need for achievement • Dynamism • Risk taking • Initiative taking • Responsibility • Innovation • Will, determination IntEnt 2005

5. What is the enterprising spirit? 1) Entrepreneurial attitudes IntEnt 2005

6. 2) Self efficacy in entrepreneurial skills IntEnt 2005

7. 3) Normative beliefs (Ajzen 02) • Relevant others for the student’s professional choice: parents, large family, close friends, family friends, alumni, teachers, VIP… • Tendency of the student to follow their advice • Potential approbation of them if setting up a business 4) Individual learning • Choice of courses • Preference for active learning etc… 5) Other personal activities • Students unions • Associations membership 6) Identity building past • Social background • Career experience of parents 7) Career choice • Type of career • Industrial/service branch chosen • Company size IntEnt 2005

8. Methodology (1): questionnaire • Very detailed • 180 questions • Confidential • Incentive to answer: feedback system • Collective • Personal • Real purpose of questionnaire hidden IntEnt 2005

9. Methodology (2): collecting data • Computer Assisted Web Interviewing • After courses in computer rooms • Through mail (& web) • Great care to get 60%-80% response rate IntEnt 2005

10. Methodology (3): processing data • Source data collected from 505 students starting up their studies in “Grandes Ecoles” – Centrale Lille & Centrale Paris • Data mining from the 180 variables on the 2004 sample (Centrale Paris + Centrale Lille) Identification of major identity and professional project variables • Selections clusters of variables, • Retain most correlated variables on criterion of chi2/dof • 3 cluster highlighting 3 major variables describing professional identity (for students starting up engineering Grandes Ecoles studies) IntEnt 2005

11. Will create if asked by friend After my first job, I will change company « I am an entrepreneur » Has a defined professional project My professinal life will be different from my peer’s Professional mobility type Business creation intent Company size « I am a manager » Type of job seeked Type of function held « I am more a manager than and expert » kIndustrial branch in which I want to work Chi2/dof < 5 5>= Chi2/dof < 8 8>= Chi2/dof <11 11>= Chi2/dof Findings 1/2: 3 major variables describe professional identity The thicker the line, the strongest the correlation (threshold = 0,1%) IntEnt 2005

12. Methodology (4): building a typology • Data mining of the 3 major variables describing professional identity in relation with Entrep. Attitudes, Self efficacy, Individual learning, Other personal activities, Identity building past, Career choice • Confirm correlation with Factorial Component Analysis if possible • Identify answers that are over or under-represented in the sample => 5 exploratory types IntEnt 2005

13. Findings 2/2: 5 types of young engineering students in “Grandes Ecoles” Entrep. intent /identity% • Hardline entrepreneurs: 4% /8% • Entrepreneurship sympathizers / Managers: 23% /33% • Non-entrepreneurs : mobiles engineers: 40% /41% • Anti-entrepreneurs: 33% /18% IntEnt 2005

14. Hardline entrepreneurs (1) Display a clear intention to set up a business and very specific behaviours and attitudes. • Self projection in the future • Strong intent to start up a business • Wants to “create his own career” • Strong entrepreneurial identity “I am an entrepreneur” • “I’m willing to join if someone I trust invites me to start a business with him” • “After some years in my first job, I’m thinking about starting up a business” • Wants to work in a SME (very significant difference) IntEnt 2005

15. Hardline entrepreneurs (2) • In this category, social origin doesn’t seem to play a major role (small sample size) • A specific attitude toward student unions • Want to be involved • But to take part in, not to lead unions (4% creators) • Courses • Want to take entrepreneurship courses/speciality (eg. Meeting entrepreneurs stimulates them) • Appreciate training periods, humanities/social sciences, individual projects IntEnt 2005

16. Attitude Self-evaluations & Biodata questions Responsibility Not letting others decide, team responsibility… Risk taking Aversion or not to risk, tasting a new tempting drink… Innovation Favorable to changes, to new working methods… Autonomy Dislike for directivity in class, little financial support for studies, opposition in friend’s discussion… Need for achievement Setting up personal challenges, working more than required… Will, determination Achieving one’s objective at all costs, personal efforts to find a job… Dynamism Extra-curricular activities, organising parties… Initiative taking Liking for taking the initiative, proposing alternatives faced to a cancelled party… Hardline entrepreneurs (3) Entrepreneurial attitudes : very/strongly/fairly correlated IntEnt 2005

17. Skill Self-evaluations & Biodata questions Developing and maintaining a network Relationships with friends and schoolmates, developing further acquaintances… Seizing and making up opportunities Opportunity of an internship, holiday opportunity… Working intensely Working so as to comply with deadlines, physical efforts Working in a team Working on one’s own or with a team, dealing with tensions with a group… Technological skills Solving technical problems, facing complexity of project activity, liking repair jobs… Making decisions Easiness to make quick decisions, information taken and quickness for choice of studies Organizational skills Organizing events at school or with a group of friends, Self projection in the future Having a personal idea of professional project after college, anticipating difficulties in the project activity Hardline entrepreneurs (4) Self efficacy : very/strongly/fairly correlated IntEnt 2005

18. Entrepreneurship sympathizers / Managers (1) Potential creators in the long term for whom: • setting up a business is one of many other professional projects • behaviours and attitudes are less specific • Still consider it ‘likely’ to setting up a business. IntEnt 2005

19. Entrepreneurship sympathizers / Managers (2) • In this category, entrepreneurial social origin plays a bigger role • Foreign students are over-represented • Attitudes toward student unions • Same as Hardline entrepreneurs (a bit less) • Courses • Want to take entrepreneurship courses/speciality (eg. Meeting entrepreneurs stimulates them) • Appreciate training periods, humanities/social sciences, individual projects. Interest is spread over a variety of courses, more interested by sciences/management/economy courses than ‘hardliners’ IntEnt 2005

20. Attitude Innovation = Risk taking -- Responsibility - Dynamism : different nature. Less in networking, more in lots of different activities Need for achievement - Autonomy = Will, determination = Dynamism diff Initiative taking: more proactive in conflict management Initiative taking + Entrepreneurship sympathizers / Managers (3) Entrepreneurial attitudes IntEnt 2005

21. Non-entrepreneurs and Anti-entrepreneurs • Non-entrepreneurs : mobiles engineers • probably two subtypes Technical experts Managers • Anti-entrepreneurs “technical” engineers who are completely opposed to the representation of the engineer as an entrepreneur Tend to show little initiative (eg. associative). IntEnt 2005

22. Conclusions / further study • Develop/confirm our typology • New data collection • Follow students as they move up the curriculum • Hardline entrepreneurs, Entrepreneurship sympathizers / Managers, Non-entrepreneurs, Anti-entrepreneurs • different educational strategies ? IntEnt 2005

23. Questions IntEnt 2005